Background: Somatic symptoms that are not attributable to organic pathology are common in general practice settings however, data in most parts of Africa including southern Nigeria are still scarce. The aim of our stu...Background: Somatic symptoms that are not attributable to organic pathology are common in general practice settings however, data in most parts of Africa including southern Nigeria are still scarce. The aim of our study was to examine such somatic symptoms reported by patients attending a primary care facility at a tertiary hospital in southern Nigeria as well as to motivate future research in this area. Method: The study was conducted at the General Out Patient Clinic (GOPC) of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH). It was a cross sectional study in which data were obtained from the case notes of 115 patients that presented in the clinic with somatic complaints which could not be attributed to organic pathology by their physicians. Results: While 46 of the patients were males, 69 were females. Their mean age was 37.7 (SD = 11.9). Internal heat, crawling sensation, body pains and palpitations were the most prevalent symptoms reported by the patients. When the symptoms were sorted into various groups, the “subjective abnormal bodily sensation” was the most prevalent and far outnumbered the “pseudo neurological symptoms”. Conclusion: A number of patients attending the GOPC of the UCTH seek consultations for medically unexplained somatic symptom. The most prevalent of these symptoms are internal heat and crawling sensations both of which are not stated in the criteria recognized by the International Classification of Diseases—version 10 (ICD-10) for the diagnosis of psychiatric disorders.展开更多
Objective： Vigna subterranea is widely consumed as a traditional staple food in Nigeria and some West African countries. The ethanolic seed extract of V. subterranea （EEVS） was investigated for its gastroprotective...Objective： Vigna subterranea is widely consumed as a traditional staple food in Nigeria and some West African countries. The ethanolic seed extract of V. subterranea （EEVS） was investigated for its gastroprotective effects on aspirin plus pylorus ligation-induced gastric ulcerated rats using an in vivo assay. Methods： Gastric mucosal ulceration was induced experimentally in Groups 2 to 5 using aspirin plus pylorus ligation. Rats in Group I were orally pretreated with 3% Tween 80 only as normal control. Groups 2 to 5 were pretreated with 3% Tween B0 （ulcer group）, 20 mg/kg of omeprazole （positive group）, and 200 and 400 mg/kg of EEVS （experimental groups）, respectively, once daily for 21 days before ulcer induction. Parameters including those for gastric secretions, ulcerated areas and gastric wall histology were assessed. Levels of superoxide dismutase （SOD）, glutathione peroxidase （GPx）, and malondialdehyde （MDA） in the gastric tissue homogenate were also determined. Results： Pretreatment with EEVS significantly （P 〈 0.05） reduced the ulcer index, gastric volume and total acidity in rats with aspirin plus pylorus ligation-induced ulcer. The pH and mucus of gastric content increased significantly （P 〈 0.05） while the levels of SOD and GPx were observed to be elevated with a reduced amount of MDA. Significant severe gastric mucosal injury was exhibited in the ulcer group and EEVS or omeprazole offered significant （P〈0.05） protection against mucosal ulceration. Histologically, the gastric submucosal layer showed remarkable decrease in edema and leucocytes infiltration compared with ulcer group. Conclusion： The study suggests that EEVS offered a protective action against aspirin plus pylorus ligationinduced gastric ulcers in Wistar rats. The protective effect might be mediated via antisecretory, cytopro- tective and antioxidative mechanisms.展开更多
文摘Background: Somatic symptoms that are not attributable to organic pathology are common in general practice settings however, data in most parts of Africa including southern Nigeria are still scarce. The aim of our study was to examine such somatic symptoms reported by patients attending a primary care facility at a tertiary hospital in southern Nigeria as well as to motivate future research in this area. Method: The study was conducted at the General Out Patient Clinic (GOPC) of the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH). It was a cross sectional study in which data were obtained from the case notes of 115 patients that presented in the clinic with somatic complaints which could not be attributed to organic pathology by their physicians. Results: While 46 of the patients were males, 69 were females. Their mean age was 37.7 (SD = 11.9). Internal heat, crawling sensation, body pains and palpitations were the most prevalent symptoms reported by the patients. When the symptoms were sorted into various groups, the “subjective abnormal bodily sensation” was the most prevalent and far outnumbered the “pseudo neurological symptoms”. Conclusion: A number of patients attending the GOPC of the UCTH seek consultations for medically unexplained somatic symptom. The most prevalent of these symptoms are internal heat and crawling sensations both of which are not stated in the criteria recognized by the International Classification of Diseases—version 10 (ICD-10) for the diagnosis of psychiatric disorders.
文摘Objective： Vigna subterranea is widely consumed as a traditional staple food in Nigeria and some West African countries. The ethanolic seed extract of V. subterranea （EEVS） was investigated for its gastroprotective effects on aspirin plus pylorus ligation-induced gastric ulcerated rats using an in vivo assay. Methods： Gastric mucosal ulceration was induced experimentally in Groups 2 to 5 using aspirin plus pylorus ligation. Rats in Group I were orally pretreated with 3% Tween 80 only as normal control. Groups 2 to 5 were pretreated with 3% Tween B0 （ulcer group）, 20 mg/kg of omeprazole （positive group）, and 200 and 400 mg/kg of EEVS （experimental groups）, respectively, once daily for 21 days before ulcer induction. Parameters including those for gastric secretions, ulcerated areas and gastric wall histology were assessed. Levels of superoxide dismutase （SOD）, glutathione peroxidase （GPx）, and malondialdehyde （MDA） in the gastric tissue homogenate were also determined. Results： Pretreatment with EEVS significantly （P 〈 0.05） reduced the ulcer index, gastric volume and total acidity in rats with aspirin plus pylorus ligation-induced ulcer. The pH and mucus of gastric content increased significantly （P 〈 0.05） while the levels of SOD and GPx were observed to be elevated with a reduced amount of MDA. Significant severe gastric mucosal injury was exhibited in the ulcer group and EEVS or omeprazole offered significant （P〈0.05） protection against mucosal ulceration. Histologically, the gastric submucosal layer showed remarkable decrease in edema and leucocytes infiltration compared with ulcer group. Conclusion： The study suggests that EEVS offered a protective action against aspirin plus pylorus ligationinduced gastric ulcers in Wistar rats. The protective effect might be mediated via antisecretory, cytopro- tective and antioxidative mechanisms.
